February Sewing Tip of the Month

Sewing on a Shirt Button
and making a Thread Shank

When hand sewing on a flat, 4 holed, shirt type button, make a thread shank to space the button away from the fabric for easier buttoning.  Place a round toothpick on top of the button and sew through the button holes and over the toothpick to increase the length of the thread securing the button,  This extra thread length will become the thread shank.

Things you will need:
Buttons, 4 strand threaded needle (See January Tip), scissors and a round toothpick.

1)  With your 4 strand threaded needle (from January’s Tip of the Month), take a small stitch on the right side of the garment where the button should be.

Then put the needle up through one of the button holes from bottom to top and pull thread knot tight against the fabric.

 2)  Slide button down the thread, next to the fabric, and hold a round wooden toothpick on top of the button, centered between the holes.

3)  Put the needle down into another button hole, allowing the thread to cross over the toothpick and poke through to the wrong side of the fabric.

 

4)  If there are 4 button holes you can chose the second hole next to the first or diagonally to the first. Using side by side holes creates a bar pattern. Using diagonal holes creates an X pattern of thread on top of the button.



 
5)  Pull the needle out through to the wrong side of the fabric. 

Then, from the wrong side of the fabric, poke the needle up through the garment and through an unused button hole.  This stitch should be very close to the thread where the thread came out.

Pull the thread tight over the toothpick and against the back side of the fabric.  Do not leave any loops.



6)  Put the needle down into the last unused button hole, allowing the thread to cross over the toothpick once again.  Pull the needle out throught the wrong side of the fabric and tighten the thread. 

Poke the needle up through the wrong side of the fabric and the first button hole. 

Repeat these stitching steps through each set of 2 button holes, crossing each time over the toothpick. Pull the thread thight after each stitch. 

You now have at least 16 strands of thread holding your button in place.

7)  For the last stitch, poke the needle up through the fabric, but not through a button hole.  Instead bring the needle out under the button and pull the thread tightly to the side.

8)  Remove the toothpick and slide the button away from the fabric as far as the threads will allow.

9)  Wrap the remaining thread end around the threads between the button and the fabric at least 3 times.

10)   To secure the thread end, poke the needle through the wrapped threads and pull the remaining threat tight.

11)  Poke the needle through the wrapped threads one more time, leaving a short loop. Put the needle through this loop.

12)  Then pull the thread tight.

13)  Lastly, re-insert the needle under the button and pull it through to the wrong side.

14)  Pull the thread tight and cut it off close to the fabric.


15)  Here is the completed button rising above the fabric on its thread shank.  There is now lots of space for the buttonhole layers of fabric to lie smoothly under the button. Button shanks also make buttons easier to maneuver through buttonholes.

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